


Bad Dreams

by Pickledpumpkinpoppers (Stormrace)



Series: Little Wally [4]
Category: DCU, The Flash (Comics), The Flash - All Media Types
Genre: Berry Allen - Freeform, Female Barry Allen, Female Wally West, Gen, Genderbending, Little Wally
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-05
Updated: 2019-07-05
Packaged: 2020-06-13 01:59:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 648
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19590295
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stormrace/pseuds/Pickledpumpkinpoppers
Summary: Flash fighting monsters on the tv had never been an issue before Wally found out her identity. And now she knew. She knew that her new aunt was the one that could be hurt by the monsters. The danger was suddenly real.





	Bad Dreams

Berry had not put much thought into letting the news play while she cooked supper, not thinking about the fact that the footage from her last big fight was still being analyzed. More specifically, she was not thinking about the angle of the camera making the giant, vengeful gorilla look twice as big than he really was, and he was huge to begin with, or about the young child watching the Flash barely avoid the animal’s wall smashing fists. She did notice that Wally was abnormally quiet through dinnertime and suddenly supremely clingy for the rest of the evening, but it did not connect in her mind.

Bedtime went smoothly, with Wally not whining and dragging her feet the whole time as she always did. Berry didn't know if she needed to be worried, or if she should use it to tease Ira later. She decided to keep a close eye on Wally, to catch if there was something wrong, then went to bed herself.

Screaming jolted her awake some time later. She crashed out of her bed and vibrated through the three walls separating Wally’s room from hers, prepared to find every single of her enemies attacking her niece. There weren't any, the room didn't look any different from when she tucked the kid in.

“Wally?” she stopped beside the bed, “What's wrong?”

“He's coming! He’s coming here!” Wally screamed in terror.

“Who?”

“He's gonna hurt you!”

“Who?”

“The gorilla! He's outside!” the little girl sobbed hysterically.

“Oh,” Berry suddenly understood and sat down on the bed, “Come here, kiddo. Come on.”

Wally needed no more encouragement to leap up and latched onto Berry tighter than a leech, still declaring that Grodd was in the back yard, even saying that she had seen him.

“It was just a dream, Wally. Grodd isn't here,” Wally insisted otherwise.

“I saw him! He's down there!”

“Okay,” Berry stood up and carried Wally to the window, “Where is he hiding?”

Wally looked down and pointed to the dying rosebushes in the corner of the yard. It was the only place someone could feasibly hide inside the property, but they would need some pretty intense camouflage to pull it off.

“He's not there, sweetie. Those are just the bushes. See, there's the Frisbee we forgot to pick up under them. Nobody's down there. We’re safe here. I made sure the gorilla was locked up in a cage far away from here, so he won’t be hurting you, Uncle Ira, me or anybody else in Central City. It's okay.”

Wally’s tears didn't slow, but they were not hysterical as the little girl went boneless against her aunt. She fisted her fingers in Berry’s shirt, as if her aunt wasn't terrified that she was messing up and wasn't going to keep holding her until she was sure she had not permanently traumatized her.

Berry eventually decided that standing in front of the window was not helping calm Wally, so she headed back to her room, using the doors this time, and settled into bed.

Wally calmed down eventually and fell asleep laying on top of Berry. She spent the rest of the night, squirming, rolling kicking and generally being the worst bedmate ever, but she slept well, and didn't have anymore nightmares, so Berry figured that the bruises and sleep deprivation were worth it.

Berry had no way to know that this was only the first time Wally would sleep in her bed after a scare over the next thirteen years. She didn't know she would tolerate having bony limbs digging into her, having barely any blankets during the winter, sleeping on the very edge of the bed and many, many more kicks bruising her side. She didn't know that after all that time and all those horrible nights, she would look back and still call every one of those instances worth it.

END


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